Toilet seat and lid covering set



Aug- 8, 1961 E. A. THORNTON 2,994,887

TOILET SEAT AND LID COVERING SET Filed April 7, 1958 INVENTOR. FG. 5 EDA/A A TI-/omuy'o/u A TTOANEY United States Patent i ice 2,994,887 TOILET SEAT AND LII) COVERING SET Edna A. Thornton, Oklahoma City, Okla., assignor to A. E. Warnberg, Oklahoma City, Okla. Filed Apr. 7, 1958, Ser. No. 726,851 1 Claim. (Cl. 4-242) This invention relates, as indicated, to an improved covering set for toilet seats and lids.

Several different designs of .tissue paper toilet seat covers are presently in use, but these covers are of a disposable type and are used only once as a sanitary measure. Some prior attempts have also been made to provide a toilet seat cover which may be used several times and primarily designed as a comfort measure for the user. Heretofore, however, such covers have been provided with complicated fastening devices to retain the covers on the toilet seats; have been expensive to manufacture; have been diticult to retain on the toilet seat without creasing of the materi-al on which the user sits; and have not been widely accepted. Also, various designs of covers for toilet lids are presently on the market, .lsually being sold in a set with a bath room rug, but they .1re used solely as a decorative covering, are usually diiiicult to assemble on a toilet lid, and do not cover the lower or front face of the lid -to enhance -the comfort of the user of the toilet.

The present invention contemplates covers for both a toilet seat and a toilet lid to provide the maximum comfort for the user. The present set may be attractively decorated to enhance the appearance of the toilet and provide, in the preferred embodiment, the maximum comfort for both the seat and back of the user. The seat covering member is secured on a toilet seat by a novel fastening combination, such that the covering will be retained taut over the top surface of the toilet seat and may be easily assembled on -a toilet seat. The lid cove-ring member provides a surface against which Ithe user may lean and may be easily assembled on substantially any design of toilet lid.

An important object of this invention is to provide Y the maximum comfort for the user of a toilet.

Another object of this invention is -to provide a toilet seat cover which will be retained taut over the seating surface of the seat and will not develop creases during repeated use.

A further object of this invention is to provide a novel fastening combination for a -toilet seat cover which will retain the cover on the toilet seat without the use of strings or the like which would need be tied and which would inherently provide loose ends dangling inside or outside of the toilet bowl.

Another object of this invention is to provide a toilet lid cover which will tit on various designs of toilet lids and provide a comfortable surface for the back of the user of the toilet.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a toilet seat and lid set which may be used for an extended period of time and re-used several times; is easily laundered; will enhance the appearance of a toilet; will have a long service life, and which may be economically manufactured.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be evident from the following detailed description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate my invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a toilet, illustrating the use of my seat and lid covering set.

FIGURE 2 is a bottom view of a toilet seat having a seat cover constructed in accordance with this invention secured thereon.

2,994,887 Patented Aug. 8, 1961 FIGURE 3 is an enlarged sectional view as taken along lines 3--3 of FIG. 2, with the thickness of the covering material exaggerated to illustrate details of construction.

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged sectional view as taken along lines 4--4 of FIG. 2, with the thickness of the material exaggerated as in FIG. 3.

FIGURE 5 is a longitudinal sectional view through a toilet lid having a lid cover constructed in accordance with this invention secured on the lid, and with the thickness of the covering material again exaggerated.

Referring to the drawings in detail, and particularly FIG. 1, reference character 6 designates a cover extending over and around the seat 8 of a toilet 10, and reference character 12 designates a cover extending around the lid 14 of the toilet 10. The seat 8 is pivotally secured to a transversely extending bar 16 on the toilet by a pair of laterally spaced bracket arms 18 extending underneath the rear end portion of the seat 8 (see also FIGS. 2 and 4). The seat 8 is generally annular-shaped, but the rear end 20 thereof is normally squared oi transverse to the remainder of the seat in the vicinity of the arms 18. The lid 14 is pivotally secured to the rod 16 by a pair of arms 22 suitably secured to the front or bottom face, as the case may be, of the lid, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5.

The seat cover 6 is in the form of a substantially annular-shaped panel of pliable material of such a size that the inner edge portion 24 (FIG. 2) overlaps the inner periphery of the seat 8, and the outer edge portion 26 overlaps the outer periphery of the seat 8. The panel forming the cover 6 may be any suitable pliable material, such as fabric, plastic, or a paper-like material, but is preferably a soft fabric, such as terry cloth, to enhance the comfort of the user of the toilet 10.

As shown in FIG. 3, the inner edge portion 24 of the cover 6 is folded back on itself and sewed by suitable stitching 28 to form yan annular-shaped channel 30 around the inner periphery of the cover. The chamber 30 receives a stiifening ring 32 having a diameter slightly larger than the inner diameter of the seat 8 to retain the inner edge portion 24 of the cover 6 on the bottom face of the seat 8 adjacent the inner periphery of the seat when the cover is installed on the seat. The stiening ring 32 may be of any desired construction, such as metal or plastic, but is preferably in the form of a length of Wire bent lengthwise in substantially a circular configuration to form a ring having a diameter slightly larger than the inner diameter of the seat 8. When the stiifening ring 32 is in the form of a length of wire, the inner edge portion 24 of the cover 6 is slitted transversely, as at 34 as shown in FIG. 2, to form an opening to the chamber 30. The wire may then be inserted lengthwise through the slit 34 into the chamber 30, and bent lengthwise as it is inserted, to form the ring 32. The ends of the wire may be overlapped in the chamber 30 to facilitate the shaping of the wire to the proper circular-like form. Conversely, the wire may be removed lengthwise through the slit 34 to facilitate the laundering ofthe cover 6.

The outer edge portion 26 of the cover 6 is also folded back on itself and sewed by suitable stitching 36 to form an `annular chamber 38 around the outer periphery of the cover. The chamber 38 receives an elongated fastener 40, preferably in the form of a continuous loop of elastic, to retain the outer edge portion 26 of the cover on the bottom `face of the seat 8 adjacent the outer periphery of the seat when the cover 6 is installed. However, when the seat 8 is provided with supporting arms 18 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 which extend rearwardly from the seat in contact with the lower face of the seat, the rearmost edge of the cover 6 is cut off transversely with respect to the remainder of the cover, such that the elastic 40 will retain the rear portion of the cover against the rear end of the seat 8 above the arms 18 as illustrated most clearly in FIG. 4. In other words, the outer edge portion 26 of the cover 6 may be extended under only the sides and the forward end of the seat 8, yet the cover 46 will be firmly secured on the seat 8.

When installing the cover 6 on the seat 8, the coverf' is pulled upwardly through the opening in the center of the seat 8 until the inner edge portion 24 of the cover comes in contact with the bottom of the seat S-around the inner periphery of the seat. The main body portion of the cover 6 is then stretched outwardlyv over the top surface of the seat 8 and the outer edge portion 26Y of the cover is forced under the outer edge of the Vseat 8 as illustrated in FIG. 2. The stiifening ring 32 will se- Ycurely anchor the inner edge portion 24 of the cover under the inner edge of the seat 8, and the fastener 40 will vsecurely anchor the outer edge portion 26 of the cover under the outer edge of the seat 8 and prevent creasing of the material comprising the cover 6 on top of the 'seat 8. It will also be observed in FIG. 2, that the cover 6 is of such a size that the usual rubber grommets 42 on the bottom of the seat 8 used for supporting the seat on the bowl 10 will be disposed between the inner edge portion 24 and the outer edge portion 26 of the cover when the cover is installed on the seat, such that the cover 6 will not normally have any contact with the bowl of the toilet 10 on which the seat 8 rests. It may be further noted that the cover 6 may be impregnated with a suitable disinfectant, such that the cover 6 will be more sanitary than an uncovered toilet seat. Y

The lid cover 12 (see FIGS. 1 and 5) comprises two panels 44 vand 46 shaped to `conform to the outline of the lid 14 and sewed together at their outer edges by suitable stitching 48. The stitching 48 extendsdown both sides of the panels 44 and 46 and Iaround the outer ends of the panels 44 and 46, with the inner ends of the panels 44 and 46 being unstitched to permit the cover 12 to be -slipped on and off of the lid 14. The panels 44 and 46 may be formed out of any suitable pliable material, such as fabric, plastic, or paper-like material, but are preferably formed out of a soft fabricsuch as lterryrcloth in the same manner as the cover 6, to provide a comfortable surface against which the user may rest his back while using the toilet 10. Also, a suitable rutile 50 may -be sewed between the outer edges of the panels 44 and 46, as shown in FIG. 5, to enhance the appearance of the cover i12.

A suitable elongated fastening means 52 is secured to the panels 44 and 46 adjacent to, but in spaced relation from, the unstitched ends 54 and 56 of the panels 44 and `-46 respectively. Fastening means'SZ may be in any suitable form, such as a string, ribbon, or an endless loop of elastic, to hold the inner end portions of the panels 44 and 46 securely around the inner end portion of the lid 14. When the fastening means 52 comprises an endless loop of elastic, the elastic may be easily secured by means of length of facing tape V58 secured by stitching 60 to the inner faces of the panels 44 andY 46. The stitching 6() extends around the opposite edges of the tape S8 to provide a chamber in which the elastic loop 52 is disposed.

It is preferred that the panels 44 and 46 be of a length to extend inwardly beyond the inner end 62 of the lid 14. Also, two slits 64 are provided in the panel 44 on the side of the lid 154 which is connected to arms 22 to provide `an apron 66 for covering the arms 22 down to substantially their connection with the bar 16. The slits 64 are provided in transversely spaced relation and are spaced apart a distance such that apron 66 will extend over both of the arms 22, without undue stretching of either of the panels 44 or 46.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a novel toilet seat and lid covering set which will provide the maximum comfort for the user of the toilet. The seat cover and the lid cover may, of course, be used separately, but when used together, they provide comfortable supporting areas for all portions of the body of the user contacted by the toilet. It will further be 4apparent that the present seat and lid covers will have a long service life, may be easily laundered for re-use, will enh-ance the appearance of a toilet, and may be economically manufactured.

Changes may be made in the combination and arrangement of parts or elements as heretofore set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings, it being understood that changes may be made in the precise embodiment shown without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claim.

I claim:

In `combination with an annular-shaped toilet seat, an annular-shaped panel of soft covering material extending over the top surface of the seat under the inner edge of the seat and under the outer edge o-f the seat, the inner peripheral portion of said panel being folded back upon itself so as to form 'an annular chamber around the inner peripheral portion of said panel; an annular stiifening member in said chamber for holding the inner peripheral portion of said panel under the inner edge of the seat, and an annulus of elastic material which in its relaxed state is of lesser diameter than the outside diameter of said annular-shaped toilet seat secured around the outer periphery of said panel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,278,381 Power Sept. 10, 1918 1,524,853 Beam Feb. 3, 1925 2,608,694 McCamy Sept. 2, 1952 2,910,705 Coplan Nov. 3, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 20,596 Great Britain Nov. 26, 1891 525,797 Canada June 5, 1956 

